Daily OMI tropospheric NO2 (air pollution) measurements over The Netherlands and Western Europe

The Netherlands and Western Europe air pollution (last 24 hours)

Today's satellite air quality measurements are available around 15:00 hours GMT for Europe. OMI (on
the EOS-Aura satellite) passes over
Europe around 12:45 hours (GMT) and it takes another 2-2.5 hours before the data are available here.
The most recent air quality measurements can be viewed in Google Earth.
The TEMIS web site
contains a limited archive of air quality and air pollution Google Earth files.

The satellite retrievals are KNMI property. For request to
use the OMI nitrogen dioxide images please contact the
press office of KNMI

The OMI near-real time nitrogen dioxide web page is not an
operational product. The timely availability of the images
is not guaranteed and may be temporarily interrupted in case
of system maintenance.

Archive OMI news

2006

Eruption of Mount Nyamulagira (Nyamuragira) (incl. animations)

Date: 08 12 2006

On November 27, 2006, Mount Nyamulagira erupted. Situated near the city of
Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the volcano posed a
danger to nearby wildlife as the animals could fall ill after eating ash-coated
vegetation. Although the full impact of the eruption was not immediately known,
the city of Goma appeared safe from any resulting lava flow as another volcano,
Mount Nyiragongo, would block the lava, according to the Associated Press.

Besides ash and possible lava, the volcano also released sulfur dioxide. OMI
tracked the emission of this gas from the volcano from November 28 to December 4, 2006.

Ozone Hole Reaches Record Size

Date: 21 10 2006

The 2006 ozone hole over the polar region of the Southern Hemisphere broke records
for both area and depth. A little over a week after the ozone hole sustained its new
record high for average area, satellites and balloon-based instruments recorded the
lowest concentrations of ozone ever observed over Antarctica, making the ozone hole
the deepest it had ever been.

This image, made from data collected by the Ozone Monitoring Instrument on NASA’s
Aura satellite, shows the Antarctic ozone hole on September 24, 2006.

Sulfur Dioxide Cloud from Rabaul Volcano

Date: 12 10 2006

On October 7, 2006, Rabaul Volcano on the northeastern tip of New Britain
produced a large-scale eruption. According to ReliefWeb, the eruption shook
windows and rained heavy ash and small stones on the city of Rabaul as
authorities declared a state of emergency. Besides volcanic ash and steam,
the eruption produced sulfur dioxide. Densely concentrated over the island
of New Britain the day of the eruption, the sulfur dioxide dispersed over
the next two days.

Tungurahua Volcano in Ecuador

Date: 17 08 2006

The Tungurahua Volcano in Ecuador had been acting up for more than a month
when it erupted ferociously in mid-August 2006. According to the Associated
Press, the volcano destroyed 10 villages, and buried the homes of roughly
5000 people—as well as the pasture for their livestock—under tons of ash.
Besides inundating the locals, Tungurahua Volcano spewed volcanic ash into
the atmosphere. OMI measured the aerosols in the region the day after the
volcano’s fierce eruption.

UK Record Heatwave and Rising Pollution Observed by Eyes in the Sky

Date: 25 07 2006

As the UK bakes during this summer's heatwave, sensors in space (AATSR on ESA's
ENVISAT and OMI op NASA's EOS-Aura) have been recording dramatic increases
in both UK land temperature and in air pollution, particularly in major
cities.
During a period of persistent stable summer weather from 15th and 19th
July, temperatures rose to record highs for the U.K. and pollution due
to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a respiratory inhibitor, appears to have
risen considerably too; the Met Office reported that temperatures on
July 19th reached a record maximum for July.
Read more ...

Live OMI measurements of total Ozone and UV radiation on the Earth's surface

Date: 25 07 2006

The Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) delivers almost live OMI
measurements of the amount of UV radiation on the Earth's surface
(as UV-index and erythemally weighted dose) and the total amount of
ozone in the atmosphere above Central and North Europe. The
measurements of these so-called Very Fast Delivery (VFD) products
are on-line within 30 minutes after observation.

During several overpasses per day, OMI has direct contact with FMI's
Satellite Data Center at Sodankylä in Northern Finland. During
those periods, OMI measurements are broadcasted directly to this data
center and directly processed, using processing software from KNMI
for cloud and ozone products and the software from FMI for UV
processing.
Read more ...

OMI Measures Volcanic Gas Cloud (quicktime movie 3,2 Mb)

Date: 13 07 2006

On May 20, 2006 a major lava dome collapse at the Soufriere Hills volcano
on Montserrat (West Indies) triggered an explosive emission of volcanic
gases. The resulting gas cloud penetrated the stratosphere, reaching an
altitude of ~20 km. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) in this cloud was tracked by
OMI for 3 weeks as it moved westwards across the Pacific, before
finally dissipating below detection limits over the Indian Ocean
on June 11.
See also (shorter but with Calipso measurements
of same event).
Read more ...

ANTARCTIC OZONE HOLE TO RECOVER LATER THAN EXPECTED

Date: 30 06 2006

Scientists from NASA and other agencies have concluded that the
ozone hole over the Antarctic will recover around 2068, nearly 20
years later than previously believed. Their findings, with lead
author Paul Newman (OMI science team member from NASA-GSFC) have been
published today in Geophysical Research Letters (Vol. 33, No. 12.)
For the first time, a model combines estimates of future Antarctic
chlorine and bromine levels based on current amounts as captured
from TOMS and OMI satellite observations, NOAA ground-level
observations, NCAR airplane-based observations, with anticipated
future emissions, the time it takes for the transport of those
emissions into the Antarctic stratosphere, and assessments of future
weather patterns over Antarctica.
Read more ...

First global tropospheric maps show streams of tropospheric ozone crossing the oceans

Date: 28 06 2006

The monthly mean maps by the Aura instruments OMI and MLS of tropospheric
ozone show pollution streaming from the U.S., Europe and China to the
west in summer and pollution from biomass burning in the equatorial zone.
The tropospheric ozone measurements were made by subtracting the MLS
stratospheric ozone from OMI column ozone.
Read more ...

SO2 Emissions from Smelters

Date: 28 06 2006

The Peruvian copper smelters are among the world's largest industrial
point sources of sulfur dioxide (SO2). OMI is sensitive enough to be
able to identify the copper being emitted from the La Oroya and Ilo
smelters even though these produce less SO2 than the volcanoes.
In addition to air quality applications, these data provide insights
into the different lifetimes, dispersal etc of volcanic vs.
industrial emission plumes.
Read more ...

Asian Dust Storms (movie)

Date: 15 04 2006

Asia is suffering through the worst dust storm season in at least
five years. The eighth major storm this year clogged the air over
China, Korea, and Japan with sand from the Taklamkan and Gobi deserts.
The sand picks up a toxic mix of heavy metals and carcinogens as the
clouds pass over China's industrial areas, exacerbating health problems
due to these storms.
Read more ...

Dust Storm over Eastern China

Date: 15 03 2006

A large dust storm spread aerosols (airborne particles) over Asia and
the Pacific starting on March 9, 2006. The storm reached the Beijing
region on March 10, and the tiny particles remained aloft for several
more days. The dust cloud remained intense as it migrated eastward
from China over Korea and Japan. OMI captured these images on March
9, 11, and 13.
Read more ...

Smoke over Southern United States

Date: 12 03 2006

A thick cloud of aerosols hung over part of North America on 12 March 2006.
Aerosols, tiny particles suspended in the atmosphere, can result from a
variety of sources, including dust storms, pollution, and smoke. This aerosol
cloud, extending from northern Mexico through Kansas, likely resulted in a
large part from fires in Texas and Oklahoma. Windy conditions that helped
spread some wildfires might also have lofted dust particles into the air.